The 7 Hidden Signs Your Business Isn't Reaching Its Potential (And What To Do About It)
What my solitary apple tree taught me about business transformation.
Hello, Denyse here, and a very warm welcome to We Are Mimosa, a place for women building brands which are aligned with their purpose and values, and who care about making the world a better place.
Standing in my allotment earlier this autumn, I faced a puzzling situation. Despite healthy-looking trees, I'd harvested exactly one apple and two pears. Something felt off about such minimal yield from otherwise robust trees.
The answer, I discovered, wasn't about the trees themselves. It was about the ecosystem - or rather, the lack of one. Without enough pollinators, even the healthiest fruit trees struggle to reach their potential. This realisation led me to start creating a fruit guild - not just planting pollinator-attracting flowers but building an entire supporting ecosystem that will improve soil health and create the conditions for abundance next year.
This pattern - of surface symptoms revealing deeper systemic issues - mirrors what I often see in purpose-led businesses. Just as a lack of fruit points to ecosystem gaps in a garden, certain business patterns can signal untapped potential that runs deeper than the immediate challenges.
When Potential Remains Just Out of Reach
Working with purpose-led female founders, I've observed how these signals often interconnect in ways that create self-fulfilling prophecies. One founder's story particularly illustrates this pattern - how a business can be simultaneously so close to breakthrough success yet held back by subtle systemic gaps.
Cassie* created innovative home decor designs that deeply resonated with her target audience. Her customers - people who live beyond society's edges - saw her brand as more than just home decor. They were looking for a sacred space for creativity and renewal, particularly as the world felt increasingly chaotic after Trump's election in 2016.
The potential in Cassie’s business was clear. But something wasn't quite clicking.
The Signs of Unfulfilled Potential
What's fascinating about Cassie's story isn't just the individual challenges she faced - it's how they interconnected to create a pattern of unrealised potential. Let's explore these hidden signs that might feel familiar to you.
1. Your Vision Exceeds Your Systems
Cassie was brilliant at creating designs that resonated deeply with her audience. But behind the scenes, she was "making it up as she went along," particularly with marketing - a critical function for any ecommerce business with clear seasonality.
This gap between creative vision and systematic execution wasn't just about organisation – it was rooted in a deeper belief pattern. Cassie didn't fully believe success was possible for her, so she hesitated to commit to the systems that success would require.
2. Cash Flow Constrains Growth (While Growth Constraints Affect Cash Flow)
This pattern created a challenging cycle. Without consistent marketing, sales were inconsistent. Without consistent sales, Cassie couldn't invest in the high-level marketing expertise her business needed - particularly in email marketing and paid advertising, essential channels for scaling an ecommerce business.
The result? Reliance on freelancers who lacked the expertise to build a data-driven ecommerce business and didn't fully understand her brand's unique positioning. As they underperformed, they needed replacing, creating additional costs and delays.
3. Your Brand Promise Outpaces Your Infrastructure
Perhaps most tellingly, Cassie's customers were seeking something profound - a sacred space for creativity and renewal. They wanted to buy their home decor from a brand that understood their desire for authentic self-expression.
But without robust systems supporting this brand promise, the customer experience didn't fully match the brand's potential. Pre-orders and shipping delays created friction points that contrasted with the seamless sanctuary experience customers sought.
4. Supply Can't Meet Demand (In More Ways Than One)
The cash flow challenges created ripple effects throughout the business. Unable to maintain adequate stock levels, Cassie frequently ran out of bestsellers. New stock arrived late, forcing customers to pre-order and wait for shipments - a experience that contrasted sharply with their desire to make their home a sanctuary and protected space.
This wasn't just about inventory management. It was about the gap between the transformative experience customers sought and what the business could consistently deliver.
5. Market Position Remains Vulnerable
While Cassie laid the groundwork for a unique market position, a key competitor who started several years after her managed to get ahead. They now have 65 stockists and have built the strong reputation that could have been hers.
This illustrates a painful truth about unfulfilled potential: market gaps don't stay open indefinitely. When we don't fully step into our potential, we often create space for others to claim it instead.
6. The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Perhaps the most poignant sign is how hesitation to fully commit creates exactly what we fear. By not going "all in" to provide what her customers wanted, Cassie inadvertently created the scenario she was trying to avoid. Customers who loved her brand but weren't getting quite the experience they sought began looking elsewhere.
This is a pattern I see repeatedly. When we don't fully enable the transformation our customers seek, entice them with consistent excellence, and enrich their lives as deeply as we could, we create the very gaps that allow competitors to step in.
7. Success Stays Perpetually Future-Tense
The final sign is subtle but significant: success always feels like it's just around the next corner. "We'll do it properly when..." becomes a recurring theme. While this might feel like practical planning, it often masks a deeper pattern of holding back from fully claiming our potential.
Breaking the Cycle: From Potential to Reality
Working together, Cassie and I have been transforming these signs of unfulfilled potential into stepping stones for growth. The key was starting with a foundation of trust and consistent support - creating a space where Cassie could both acknowledge current challenges and believe in future possibilities.
Some transformations were immediate and practical. We brought in experienced contractors who truly understood her brand vision, including professional customer service support and strategic email marketing expertise. This wasn't just about delegation - it was about learning to communicate her vision effectively and trust others to help deliver it.
Other changes were more subtle but equally crucial. By using data to demonstrate how deeply her customers connected with her products, Cassie began to trust her brand's potential more fully. This growing confidence supported bigger strategic decisions, including diversifying her product range. Not just giving customers more to love, but creating better cash flow through products with varying turnaround times.
Throughout all of this, we kept a watchful eye on cash flow - because just like my fruit guild, a business needs consistent nurturing to thrive. You can have the most creative vision in the world, but without strong fundamentals supporting it, that vision will stay just out of reach.
Ready to Transform Your Business's Potential?
These signs of unfulfilled potential aren't permanent limitations - they're invitations to create something extraordinary. But here's what I know from both my CEO experience and working with purpose-led founders: transformation rarely happens in isolation.
Just as I'm creating a fruit guild rather than expecting lone trees to thrive, you don't have to figure this out alone. If you recognise these patterns in your own business, let's talk about how we can work together to:
Build the systems that will support your creative vision
Create sustainable cash flow for strategic growth
Develop your confidence in delegating and leading
Use data to guide smart strategic decisions
Finally fully claim your market position
Book a consultation call with me to explore how we can transform your business's potential into reality.
Looking for more insights on building an unforgettable brand? Check out my mini-series where we dive deep into the three essential elements that make brands truly remarkable.
Over to You
I'd love to hear which of these signs resonates most with your business journey. Have you noticed any of these patterns in your own work? Perhaps you've already transformed some of them - what made the difference?
If you're in the middle of your own transformation story, what's one small step you could take this week toward fully claiming your potential?
Share your thoughts in the comments below. Your experience might be exactly what another founder needs to hear to recognize their own path forward.
If this piece resonated with you, please take a moment to "❤️" and share it. Together, we're creating a community where purpose-driven female founders can thrive.
Until next time,
Denyse
About me
If you’re new to my work, it might be helpful if I explain who I am and what I do!
I’m Denyse Whillier, a former Chief Executive with more than 25 years of business experience under my favourite Sézane belt. I upcycle my skills and experience to provide business mentoring and strategic support, reimagined for female founded businesses.
My mission is simple. It’s to make it easier for women to build thriving brands which are aligned with their purpose and values and to close the gender gap in entrepreneurship, one female founder at a time.
To find out how I can support you on your business journey, check out this link. And if you’d like to know more about the results my clients get, here are some of my case studies.
One-off advice | 3-hour intensive | Ongoing monthly business coaching | Done-for-you business audit